Rising Democratic star Wendy Davis is turning to deep-pocketed Texans who live in Washington to boost her campaign for governor, an effort to compete in the deeply red state that also exposes her to attacks from opponents who try to shun the Beltway scene, according to the Dallas Morning News.

Groups like the Lone Star Project and Battleground Texas, which are girding for an uphill mission to turn around Democratic fortunes in Texas, brought out donors for Ms. Davis at a recent fundraiser in Washington, the newspaper said.

“It helps me through endorsements and their willingness to financially assist,” Ms. Davis told the newspaper. “It helps in terms of building the kind of volunteer base and campaign worker base that’s needed in order to take on a state as large as Texas is.”